Silver Spring, Maryland--Two years after launching an initiative to reduce severe malnutrition in Ethiopia's southeastern Somali Region, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) continues to work with affected communities to fight chronic food shortages by implementing emergency food distribution and providing training to community residents and the local government to be better prepared for future food crises.

The Community Therapeutic Care (CTC) project, launched in October 2006 and funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), is a community-based approach for addressing acute malnutrition, especially among young children. The goal of CTC is to treat the majority of severely malnourished people in their homes. To accomplish this, ADRA uses a limited number of highly trained professional staff and focuses on building the capacity of communities to deal with future nutrition emergencies. Already, more than 2,000 severely malnourished children living in Kelafo district, in the Gode Zone of the Somali Region, have been treated successfully, while some 15,000 mothers and children received essential food aid.

"We have found that working with the community through this method is the most efficient and cost-effective way to reach as many children as possible," said Dr. Mesfin Hailemariam, Programs Coordinator for ADRA Ethiopia. "It is primarily an outpatient procedure, which allows us to help as many children as possible, using our resources as efficiently as we can."

CTC works with local volunteers who receive training to detect severe malnutrition in children five years or younger living in their communities. Any such cases are immediately referred to one of several ADRA clinics located throughout the district. Patients are then placed on an eight-week rehabilitation program of lipid-rich Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods (RUTF). Plumpy'nut, a peanut-based RUTF that is commonly used by ADRA, has had a 90 percent success rate in reversing malnutrition in communities around the world.

To assist children who display moderate signs of malnutrition, ADRA also runs a mobile supplementary feeding program that distributes Corn Soy Blend (CSB), a highly nutritious, vitamin-enriched corn soy food blend, for mothers and children in 18 centrally located distribution sites throughout the district.

"This project allows us to counter the effects of malnutrition before it gets to the critical level," said Dr. Hailemariam. "This project also provides food aid for pregnant and lactating mothers, as well as children. If the mother is malnourished, she will be unable to provide sufficient nutrition for her unborn, or nursing child."

In addition to the emergency aid provided, ADRA is targeting local communities, educating mothers on various health and nutrition topics through traditional tea ceremonies. These gatherings allow ADRA to meet with local women and discuss important health issues, such as breastfeeding, nutrition, and childcare. The program also gives them the tools necessary to better provide for their children.

Including Kelafo, ADRA is also working in four of the five districts of the Gode Zone, providing medical assistance, emergency relief items, and community assistance through initiatives that involve the community. ADRA's development work in this region includes food for work programs, road and well construction projects, and activities in natural resource management.

In Ethiopia there are approximately 75,000 children in need of therapeutic feeding, with more than 6 million in danger of experiencing malnutrition, according to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). Excessive drought, insufficient rains, devastating flash floods, and spiking food prices have exacerbated the food crisis in a region of the country that is characteristically food insecure.

ADRA has been active in Ethiopia since 1982, when it first provided emergency relief during a drought-related famine. Since then, ADRA has focused on development activities, particularly health, education, water and sanitation, and food security projects.

To assist in ADRA's response to the current food crisis in Ethiopia, please call 1.800.424.ADRA (2372) or give online at www.adra.org.

ADRA is a non-governmental organization present in 125 countries providing sustainable community development and disaster relief without regard to political or religious association, age, gender, or ethnicity.

Additional information about ADRA can be found at www.adra.org.

Author: Nadia McGill

Media Contact: John Torres, Senior Public Relations Manager, ADRA International 12501 Old Columbia Pike Silver Spring, MD 20904 Phone: 301.680.6357 E-mail: Media.Inquiries@adra.org